Found Deceased SC - Brittanee Drexel, 17, Myrtle Beach, 25 April 2009 - #18

[Coldpizza]

FBI offers $25k reward in Brittanee Drexel disappearance
WBTW News Staff
Published: June 3, 2016, Updated: June 8, 2016

Brittanee Drexel was reported missing seven years ago on Ocean Boulevard. Drexel left her home in Rochester, New York during the spring of 2009 without her parents’ consent and traveled with a group of teenagers on spring break to Myrtle Beach.

FBI Special Agent in Charge David Thomas says investigators believe Drexel was taken from the Blue Water Inn in Myrtle Beach to the area where Wednesday’s press conference was held, in McCllelanville, and was held against her will for several days.

“We believe she traveled from the Blue Water, here, to this general area, and was here for several days,” says Thomas. “We are confident in the fact that she was here.”



http://helpfindbrittaneedrexel.com/

If you have any information concerning this case, please contact:
Myrtle Beach Police Department
(843) 918-1963 or CUE Center For Missing Persons 24 Hour Tip Line 910-232-1687

NCMEC Poster - http://www.missingkids.com/missingki...archLang=en_US

NamUs - https://www.findthemissing.org/en/cases/5438/0/

Previous Threads:
(Note - Threads #1 - #16 are no longer linkable)

Thread # 17

 

[Dee10]

Thread 1 page 40-ish there is lots of discussion about a cell phone ping from B's phone having gone inland into Williamsburg Co. and then back toward the coast & Georgetown. All links I can find are expired and when I do a Google search I turn up no results. Was this information redacted? If so, for inaccuracy or secrecy? If it's true then it could be very important with regard to where Brittanee was held. Does anyone recall how this lead panned out?

It is not uncommon for new agency to take down old items or links unfortunately IMO. Tthere is a way to find old items through cache I believe, but I don't know how to do it maybe someone else knows. I did find a NG transcript from Jan. 2014.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Turn (ph) to Seven Mile Road because this has always remained a place of interest for Brittanee`s cell phone. And basically, that`s really all we have.

Note - This would be one road over from Old Collins Creek Rd.

This was interesting from the same transcript:

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hundreds of leads and thousands of man hours later, Myrtle Beach detectives have what they`re calling a substantial lead to work on in the Brittanee Drexel case.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We got a call from someone that had met a person that made unusual statements and gave some information that they thought was unusual and suspicious.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The then 17-year-old was on spring break in Myrtle Beach on April 25th, 2009, when she disappeared. She was last seen leaving the Blue Water Resort on Ocean Boulevard. The teenager`s cell phone transmitted its last signal in southern Georgetown County the day after she went missing. But Lieutenant Capp says that area will not be the focus of this latest search.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) a little bit closer to home and closer to our jurisdiction. But we`d rather remain vague at this point.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Capp says the case remains very active, and investigators constantly follow new leads. But this latest tip is better than even the tipster was aware.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They contacted us, and with our knowledge of the case, we were actually more interested than that person even realized.

From a another part of same:


UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And now Myrtle Beach police investigators are releasing new information, saying that they are looking at even more people who may have been involved.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There`s a couple more we`re looking at now.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So there`s more persons of interest in the case?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, there is.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: About how many, would you say?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: At least one more.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: With more. So four or five?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: One will always lead to another, to another, to another. We know that. One word could break the case.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A team of investigators has been working on this case. Some of them even wear "Help find Brittanee " bracelets. They say they have to be tight-lipped about it all because it is an active investigation. But they say they are just one good lead away from making an arrest.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you think, in the end, one arrest will be made or several? Do you think it was a group?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think, in the end, there will be several arrests, but it`s going to start with one, and then the domino effect will occur. And one right after another, people will start talking.

http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1401/10/ng.01.html

 

[waltzingmatilda]

I did find an old article that mentions that PB & company attended a college party after Brittanee left their hotel but before they returned to ROC. Is this the party that you guys are remembering? This is one of the few articles that I can find that still works after all these years.


http://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=7479898&page=1

Thanks for finding that article LLLindsayy! That must be the party I remembered reading about.

 

[stillwatersc]

What do yall think about this?

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/02/1...pearances-brittanee-drexel.html#ixzz1mg0parne

Myrtle Beach detectives said they believe Drexel was abducted as she walked the one-mile stretch of Ocean Boulevard between the two hotels. She may have been snatched off the street, Vella said, or willingly accepted a ride “from the wrong person.”
They also said Drexel was likely alive and with her phone when it gave off its last signal in Georgetown County.

This is from a 2012 article. Remember investigators were not able to pinpoint the exact location of BD's phone because GPS technology at the time was not as advanced and there were very few towers in the area for triangulation. IIRC only one tower picked up the signal.

https://wrongfulconvictionsblog.org/2012/06/01/cell-tower-triangulation-how-it-works/

 

[ZooSleuth]

What do yall think about this?

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/02/1...pearances-brittanee-drexel.html#ixzz1mg0parne



This is from a 2012 article. Remember investigators were not able to pinpoint the exact location of BD's phone because GPS technology at the time was not as advanced and there were very few towers in the area for triangulation. IIRC only one tower picked up the signal.

https://wrongfulconvictionsblog.org/2012/06/01/cell-tower-triangulation-how-it-works/

Good find. Since the area her phone had to be in was in was not very accurate (I think somebody said 4-5 miles in diameter) LE must have been using information other than the cell pings to come to the conclusion she was with her phone at that time.

 

[LLLindsayy]

Thanks for the new thread. I'm continuing to browse all past threads. As anticipated, this is a lengthy undertaking. I'm hoping to find previously reported facts that we have forgotten about that, in hindsight, might reveal more answers. Often I am finding discussion of reported facts that later ends up being a dead end which is why you will sometimes see me refer to even earlier threads. I'm trying to read ahead and see how those leads pan out before I bring them forward. If I bring it forward and ask what the result was it is either because I haven't yet gotten to the resolution or because conversation on it dwindled down.

At this point I am finding A LOT of conflicting reports of timelines: when B arrived at hotel, how long she stayed, what time she left, and timeline/place of cell phone pings. It looks like there was a lot of confusion in the beginning and I'm wondering if there has been an official timeline released since?

Also I am at the place where people are discussing the fact that JO lived just south of MB in the past. I haven't forgotten this fact but I think it would be interested to explore the possibility that she may have known someone who knew the Ts when she lived there. Is it possible that B came in contact with any member of the Ts or their associates prior to her disappearance -- some sort of contact that would have made her willingly get into one of their vehicles? Having posed that question I would still like to mention that I do believe she was abducted from the street forcefully without having met them ever before. I'm just trying to be open-minded.

 

[Marc]

Thanks for the new thread. I'm continuing to browse all past threads. As anticipated, this is a lengthy undertaking. I'm hoping to find previously reported facts that we have forgotten about that, in hindsight, might reveal more answers. Often I am finding discussion of reported facts that later ends up being a dead end which is why you will sometimes see me refer to even earlier threads. I'm trying to read ahead and see how those leads pan out before I bring them forward. If I bring it forward and ask what the result was it is either because I haven't yet gotten to the resolution or because conversation on it dwindled down.

At this point I am finding A LOT of conflicting reports of timelines: when B arrived at hotel, how long she stayed, what time she left, and timeline/place of cell phone pings. It looks like there was a lot of confusion in the beginning and I'm wondering if there has been an official timeline released since?

Also I am at the place where people are discussing the fact that JO lived just south of MB in the past. I haven't forgotten this fact but I think it would be interested to explore the possibility that she may have known someone who knew the Ts when she lived there. Is it possible that B came in contact with any member of the Ts or their associates prior to her disappearance -- some sort of contact that would have made her willingly get into one of their vehicles? Having posed that question I would still like to mention that I do believe she was abducted from the street forcefully without having met them ever before. I'm just trying to be open-minded.

Has anyone considered Brittanee and her Rochester friends were looking to score drugs, went to Club Kryptonite asking around and were referred to the T's in McClellenville? Maybe the phrase, "bring back my shorts" was code for drugs after Brittanee went to pick them up from PB and friends. Maybe the T's brought the drugs to the Blue Resort to PB and his buddies. They possibly left the hotel at same time as Brittanee or Brittanee was sent outside to get them. She didn't return, PB and friends freaked out and felt it best to get out of town quick and lawyer up. It would explain why they wouldn't help look for her or talk to police out of fear for their lives. And if this was over drugs, they would never admit it to authorities. This may not be a random abduction. I've followed this case from 2009.

 

[waltzingmatilda]

Has anyone considered Brittanee and her Rochester friends were looking to score drugs, went to Club Kryptonite asking around and were referred to the T's in McClellenville? Maybe the phrase, "bring back my shorts" was code for drugs after Brittanee went to pick them up from PB and friends. Maybe the T's brought the drugs to the Blue Resort to PB and his buddies. They possibly left the hotel at same time as Brittanee or Brittanee was sent outside to get them. She didn't return, PB and friends freaked out and felt it best to get out of town quick and lawyer up. It would explain why they wouldn't help look for her or talk to police out of fear for their lives. And if this was over drugs, they would never admit it to authorities. This may not be a random abduction. I've followed this case from 2009.

Yes Marc, We have discussed that possibility. Brittannee was the only underage person with the two groups. She had very little money and was basically mooching off the so called friends, it wouldn't be out of the question that she was being used as a 'drug mule'. Being underage, she would not have had as harsh a sentence as someone over 18 if caught with drugs. I personally think this drug angle. is a very real possibility. Think about it. Britt walks down OB to the guys room to supposedly pick up a pair of sandals. We have no idea if it was just the Rochester guys or if locals were also there. Not long after, I cannot remember how long she was there but it wasn't very long until the girls call and one of them asks for her to reurn her shorts. (we looked up slang for 'shorts' in the urban dictionary but I don't recall any definition sounding nefarious) Brittanee leaves the guys and heads back to her hotel and disappears. The boys haul arse to a 'college party' and decide to head on home to NY that night to get a head start on their trip since they were checking out the following morning (basically in a few hours) PB didn't even bother to get his room deposit back. The girls move to a different hotel leaving Britt's belongings behind without knowing where the heck she is. Yet one of the gals found time to go to the PD and bailed out one of the guys for drunk driving or something.

Y'all feel free to help me fill in details because I need help in remembering these unusual people's names and antics that evening. All I know is that Brittanee was last seen with the Roc group of young male adults. They were watching a sports game on TV but IIRC it was over when Britt got there. Will try to check times. I don't think the Roc bunch killed Brittanee but I think they may know/suspect who took her due to all the shenaigans and shady behavior and the only reason I can conclude is that there was some illegal behavior that made their actions so peculiar that evening. I even wonder if the presser was a call for one of the Roc kids who knows something to come clean. They are older now and some are probably married and maybe even with kids.

My honest opinion. Glad you are still following along with us and hope you continue to participate in the thread.

 

[RocNYchick]

Yes Marc, We have discussed that possibility. Brittannee was the only underage person with the two groups. She had very little money and was basically mooching off the so called friends, it wouldn't be out of the question that she was being used as a 'drug mule'. Being underage, she would not have had as harsh a sentence as someone over 18 if caught with drugs. I personally think this drug angle. is a very real possibility. Think about it. Britt walks down OB to the guys room to supposedly pick up a pair of sandals. We have no idea if it was just the Rochester guys or if locals were also there. Not long after, I cannot remember how long she was there but it wasn't very long until the girls call and one of them asks for her to reurn her shorts. (we looked up slang for 'shorts' in the urban dictionary but I don't recall any definition sounding nefarious) Brittanee leaves the guys and heads back to her hotel and disappears. The boys haul arse to a 'college party' and decide to head on home to NY that night to get a head start on their trip since they were checking out the following morning (basically in a few hours) PB didn't even bother to get his room deposit back. The girls move to a different hotel leaving Britt's belongings behind without knowing where the heck she is. Yet one of the gals found time to go to the PD and bailed out one of the guys for drunk driving or something.

Y'all feel free to help me fill in details because I need help in remembering these unusual people's names and antics that evening. All I know is that Brittanee was last seen with the Roc group of young male adults. They were watching a sports game on TV but IIRC it was over when Britt got there. Will try to check times. I don't think the Roc bunch killed Brittanee but I think they may know/suspect who took her due to all the shenaigans and shady behavior and the only reason I can conclude is that there was some illegal behavior that made their actions so peculiar that evening. I even wonder if the presser was a call for one of the Roc kids who knows something to come clean. They are older now and some are probably married and maybe even with kids.

My honest opinion. Glad you are still following along with us and hope you continue to participate in the thread.

Great synopsis WM! I just want to add the fact that she was somewhat "badgered" into going and these people were not close friends of Britts. Given the fact that she was underage and didn't really have money to contribute, why did they want her to go so badly? Kinda adds to the mule theory IMO.

 

[dove28]

Hey! Joined WS a while back to follow the Hannah Graham case but have been following this case (outside of WS) since it happened. I wanted to float an idea about the night of her 'abduction,' forgive me if it's already been suggested. I know she was texting with her BF at the time, and there was an extremely short interval between her last text and the BF threatening to tell her mom she was in MB. I would think under normal circumstances, a delay that short wouldn't be a big deal. Even if they had been texting rapid fire back and forth, it's not unusual for a pause in texting (going to the bathroom, getting a soda, whatever). So I think, and of course JMO, but that BD texted her boyfriend either that she was scared and in a "sketchy" place, and/or that she was being followed. The first would lend credence to the idea that she didn't take the main road to walk back to the hotel. As for the second, she could have been aware someone seemed to be following her but didn't feel sure enough to call police (or didn't have time), and instead just texted her boyfriend something like, "there is a van that might be following me, it's making me nervous." If I got a text like that from someone and then they didn't respond to my next text within a VERY short period, I would DEFINITELY freak out.

 

[Dee10]

Has anyone considered Brittanee and her Rochester friends were looking to score drugs, went to Club Kryptonite asking around and were referred to the T's in McClellenville? Maybe the phrase, "bring back my shorts" was code for drugs after Brittanee went to pick them up from PB and friends. Maybe the T's brought the drugs to the Blue Resort to PB and his buddies. They possibly left the hotel at same time as Brittanee or Brittanee was sent outside to get them. She didn't return, PB and friends freaked out and felt it best to get out of town quick and lawyer up. It would explain why they wouldn't help look for her or talk to police out of fear for their lives. And if this was over drugs, they would never admit it to authorities. This may not be a random abduction. I've followed this case from 2009.

This is a possibility. One thing about the timeline that bothers me is on the trip down to the boys place was 15 minutes from the traffic cam to the hotel.

9:48 Leave hotel to head back
9:58 Last text (approx. 5 minutes to next camera)
9:27 Ping at Surfside Beach (approx. 15 min. drive)

29 minutes from last text to Surfside - 15 mins. = 14 minutes unaccounted for

Maybe she did go out to meet them and they were park beside the road & she got in the car or van to talk to them or if it was totally unrelated maybe they got talking to her about a party or something then offered to drive her back to her hotel. That approx. 14 minutes is a lengthy period of time & tends to defy that she was just snatched off the street even if she was walking slow texting. Just some thoughts, I used the timeline at http://truecrimediva.com/tcds-thoughts-brittanee-drexel/

 

[waltzingmatilda]

Thank you RocNYchic. Pb had 17 year old Britt in the VIP section of Club Krypton, Kraken, Krater or whatever the name the previous evening and JO used to live south of MB. I wouldn't be at all surprised if there was a connection to the T gang. They seem to get around. However, the Roc kids may have just freaked when Britt was snatched off the street and they know nothing because they were all high or something and that explains their weird actions. I sure would love to see cell phone records for Britt's phone and the phones of the Roc gang. It would be telling if there were no calls to her phone looking for her.

My hope is that advances in wireless technology has helped LE to come to a conclusion of who the perps are.

 

[Caffeine]

It's hard to say for sure, but I tend to lean towards a forced abduction, but it certainly is possible she voluntarily went into a car. The lure definitely could have been drugs, a party or whatever.

However, one this is clear. When she got into that vehicle she was likely in danger almost immediately, hence the lack of texts or calls from her phone.

When I think of the idea she voluntarily went into a car I tend to imagine that would be a slow culmination of events...maybe driving in the opposite direction she expected, taking her to a place she wasn't promised. Either way, she likely would have texted someone in that situation.

 

[RocNYchick]

Thank you RocNYchic. Pb had 17 year old Britt in the VIP section of Club Krypton, Kraken, Krater or whatever the name the previous evening and JO used to live south of MB. I wouldn't be at all surprised if there was a connection to the T gang. They seem to get around. However, the Roc kids may have just freaked when Britt was snatched off the street and they know nothing because they were all high or something and that explains their weird actions. I sure would love to see cell phone records for Britt's phone and the phones of the Roc gang. It would be telling if there were no calls to her phone looking for her.

My hope is that advances in wireless technology has helped LE to come to a conclusion of who the perps are.

I absolutely have believed from day 1 that there is a connection. For every single one of both PB group and JO group to behave they way they did, and stil after 7 years have never once spoken to Britts family or ever shown any concern....well that to me says something. That many young people dont keep their mouths so shut like that unless there is a VERY good reason. Ikeep hoping one of them will grow up and grow a conscience and talk to LE. Like FBI said, even if they are not involoved, they may know something that they dont even know they know. It is so frustrating.

 

[RocNYchick]

It's hard to say for sure, but I tend to lean towards a forced abduction, but it certainly is possible she voluntarily went into a car. The lure definitely could have been drugs, a party or whatever.

However, one this is clear. When she got into that vehicle she was likely in danger almost immediately, hence the lack of texts or calls from her phone.

When I think of the idea she voluntarily went into a car I tend to imagine that would be a slow culmination of events...maybe driving in the opposite direction she expected, taking her to a place she wasn't promised. Either way, she likely would have texted someone in that situation.

The reason I think she voluntarily got into a car is because of the wording FBI used at presser last week. He said she "traveled" to McC area.....not taken there, but "traveled" and also that she was held against her will for a "portion" of the time. If she was forcibly abducted, wouldnt she be being held against her will the whole time?

 

[Kmiller7779]

LLLindsayy, I chose Topix because someone on Facebook suggested trying to find a local MCVL forum. I googled that and the only thing that came up was Topix. I decided to start a thread in hopes that some of the locals might see it. I live in Charleston, SC and I drive through MCVL fairly often. It is only about 45 minutes away from where I live. More than anything, I do not want to see this die down. I think they are so very close to making an arrest. We have to keep fighting for our girl. She went on this trip, but was miserable the entire time due to how her friends were treating her. On top of it all, this terrible thing happened to her. These people who did this must be held accountable for taking the life of a 17 year old girl who had her entire life ahead of her.

 

[courtfollower89]

Great synopsis WM! I just want to add the fact that she was somewhat "badgered" into going and these people were not close friends of Britts. Given the fact that she was underage and didn't really have money to contribute, why did they want her to go so badly? Kinda adds to the mule theory IMO.

I remember reading somewhere she messaged her boyfriend that everyone else was doing drugs but her and she was trying to avoid them. .

 

[andalso]

I remember reading somewhere she messaged her boyfriend that everyone else was doing drugs but her and she was trying to avoid them. .

Pretty sure that was in the ID Discovery show. I am personally of the opinion that the Roch friends made some terrible decisions that cast suspicion on themselves, but I feel strongly that they responded to the situation like scared teens who were doing teenage things on spring break would do. Poor decision making and judgement, for sure! IMO, I chalk it up to the fact that drugs and alcohol were likely involved and they were covering their own butts, ultimately casting a ton of suspicion on themselves. I don't in any way think that Brittanee was acting as a drug runner. I don't dismiss the angle being necessary to consider but in my opinion, not likely.

 

[Marc]

Yes Marc, We have discussed that possibility. Brittannee was the only underage person with the two groups. She had very little money and was basically mooching off the so called friends, it wouldn't be out of the question that she was being used as a 'drug mule'. Being underage, she would not have had as harsh a sentence as someone over 18 if caught with drugs. I personally think this drug angle. is a very real possibility. Think about it. Britt walks down OB to the guys room to supposedly pick up a pair of sandals. We have no idea if it was just the Rochester guys or if locals were also there. Not long after, I cannot remember how long she was there but it wasn't very long until the girls call and one of them asks for her to reurn her shorts. (we looked up slang for 'shorts' in the urban dictionary but I don't recall any definition sounding nefarious) Brittanee leaves the guys and heads back to her hotel and disappears. The boys haul arse to a 'college party' and decide to head on home to NY that night to get a head start on their trip since they were checking out the following morning (basically in a few hours) PB didn't even bother to get his room deposit back. The girls move to a different hotel leaving Britt's belongings behind without knowing where the heck she is. Yet one of the gals found time to go to the PD and bailed out one of the guys for drunk driving or something.

Y'all feel free to help me fill in details because I need help in remembering these unusual people's names and antics that evening. All I know is that Brittanee was last seen with the Roc group of young male adults. They were watching a sports game on TV but IIRC it was over when Britt got there. Will try to check times. I don't think the Roc bunch killed Brittanee but I think they may know/suspect who took her due to all the shenaigans and shady behavior and the only reason I can conclude is that there was some illegal behavior that made their actions so peculiar that evening. I even wonder if the presser was a call for one of the Roc kids who knows something to come clean. They are older now and some are probably married and maybe even with kids.

My honest opinion. Glad you are still following along with us and hope you continue to participate in the thread.

As a young college student, I can personally say my friends and I had code words or phrases when speaking of obtaining drugs. You won't find them in an urban dictionary as they are random things a particular group of friends agree to use. It just seems rather obvious this was the case IMO. Brittanee goes to PB's hotel room occupied by all males looking for "sandals". Then receives texts/phone calls from her female friend demanding her "shorts". Very suspicious innuendos IMO. Did Brittanee not own any clothes or shoes? Highly unlikely.

 

[andalso]

I have been following this case from the get go. I have agreed for a while that the T family is the place to find the answers and I have been sleuthing every rabbit hole I can think of. Tonight, something occurred to me. Copy cat crimes.

I have not fully developed my thoughts on this, but was reading this when it occurred to me http://www.wbtv.com/story/30853399/deputies-one-in-custody-after-sexual-assault-shots-fired

Would be easy enough to make Brittanees dissapperance look like Shannon M's murder and make LE look in the direction of those suspects.

Just a thought.